Jasper County Democrat, Volume 17, Number 93, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 February 1915 — WORLD’S EVENTS TERSELY and BRIEFLY TOLD [ARTICLE]

WORLD’S EVENTS TERSELY and BRIEFLY TOLD

European War News The German submarine blockade of the British isles has been in effect for a week with the result that so far as is known, two. American, two Norwegian, one French and six British steamships have been sunk by mine or torpedoed by submarines. Two German submarines are missing and a third has been hit and possibly sunk by a French destroyer. * * * The British admiralty announced at London that the Clan MacNaughton, an armed cruiser, has been missing since February 3, and it is feared has been lost. Clan MacNaughton carried 20 officers and a crew’ of 261 men. Clan McNaughton is believed to have been lost as the result of a storm. * * * A sudden change of feeling concern- , ing the attitude of Italy has been noticeable in diplomatic quarters in Berlin during the last few days. The* position of Italy appears to have become a matter of much greater concern. The reasons for this change are not clear at this time. * * * The continued French offensive in the Champagne region is resulting successfully, according to the official communique issued at Paris. It states that the French forces have made new progress to the north of Perthes, many prisoners were taken. Berlin claims the German forces were successful everywhere.

The official list of changes in the naval personnel, issued at London, announces that “Capt. Creil F. Dampier, until recently in command of the battleship Audacious, has been promoted to-rear admiral.” * * * Troops of the Union of South Africa occupied the town of Garubeb, German Southwest Africa. * * * Nicholas Misu, Roumanian minister to London, soon will return to England bearing a note assuring the Brit-' ish government that the Roumanian army will take the field in April. * * * The Swedish steamer Specia has been sunk by a mine in the North sea. The Specia sailed from Liverpool' on February 7 with a crew of 3 8 and a cargo of 2,600 tons. •* * - Making claim to marked successes in the Carpathians and to having defeated the German offensive campaign in the north, which “never emerged from its period of preparation,” Russian staff officers at Petrograd took an optimistic view of the outlook along the whole front. The German advance from -East Prussia has been stopped, owing to floods. * * *

Domestic The senate of the Vermont legislature killed the woman suffrage' bill which was passed by the house. .■* * * Most of the Piute Indians driven into Cqttcnwood Gulch succeeded in escaping during the night, according to a message received from Bluff, Utah. « * * * At the resumption &f the attorney general’s investigation in New York of the cost of wheat, bread and flour, C. H. Canby, president of the Chicago board of trade, denied speculation was responsible for the high price of wheat. He asserted the law of supply and demand has caused a steady,, rise in the price of grain and that the present quotations are induced by the European demand. * * * The water is rising rapidly in the Mississippi river near Dubuque, la., owing to heavy rains, and melting snow. There is danger of floods if the ice breaks suddenly. Robert M. Sweitzer defeated Carter H. Harrison for the Democratic mayoralty nomination at Chicago by a plurality of approximately 76,000. The voto was the largest ever cast in a Democratic pricary in Chicago. The total was approximately 300,000. Sweitzer received five women’s votes to Harrison’s three. William Hale Thompson was the Republican nomination for mayor by a plurality placed at approximately 1,000 over Judge Harry Olson, fusion candidate. * * , * The Hoffman house, one of the oldest of the downtown hotels and for many years headquarters in New York for Democratic politicians, has been sojd to a construction company. The price is said to have been more than $3,000,000. * * * Richard Peter Stegler, a native of Germany who had signified his allegiance to the United States by taking out his first citizenship papers, was arrested for obtaining a fraudulent passport and was committed to the Tombs at New York. * * * The 36 master plumbers who have been on trial at Des Moines, la s , since February 10 on charges of violating the Sherman anti-trust law were convicted by a jury in the federal district court. Judge John C. Pollock will pass sentence later.

By a vote of 66 to 62 the Minnesota house of representatives, at St. Paul, passed the senate county option measure making prohibition a county issue. The measure now goes to Governor Hammond, who has indicated he would sign it. * * * Foreign Four hundred members of the mutinous Indian regiment which revolted at Singapore have been killed, as well as seven Gferman prisoners from the detention camp who joined the natives when offered their freedom. * * r* Six officers, 13 soldiers and 13 civilians were killed and eight soldiers were wounded when troops of tlfe British Fifth light infantry regiment stationed at Singapore, India, rioted because of dissatisfaction over promotions. Landing parties from British and allied warships restored order. ** * j Personal Mrs. May S. Allen Webb, eightyseven, first president and organizer of the W. C. T. U., died in Savannah, Ga. She was born in London, but spent the greater part of her life here. She has been the only honorary president. * ** Mme. Sarah Bernhardt has been successfully operated upon at Bordeaux, France. Her right leg was amputated at the knee as the result of an injury suffered several years ago while playing ‘ Joan qt Arc." * *' • Judge William Kavanaugh, aged forty-nine, of Little Rock, Ark., president of the Southern league, died suddenly of apoplexy. * * * Erov Rojesvensky, Russian consul general, died at San Francisco. * * * Ernest Thompson Seton is no longer chief scout of the Boy Scouts of America. The office held by Seton has been abolished.

Sporting Official announcement by Promoter Jack Curley that the fight between Jack Johnson and Jess Willard for the world’s heavyweight championship will not be held until at least two weeks later than March 6, was made at El Paso, Tex. - * • Mexican Revolt A message from Aguascalientes to San Antonio, Tex., says Gen. Santos Coy and Gen. A..Banuelos, former Villa officers, who remained with Gen. Roque Gonzales Garza when the latter fled from the capital, were executed by order of Villa. * * * Washington Praise for the “simple, straight-for-ward" people of the southern mountains, and criticism of “the airs that high society gives itself” were voiced by President Wilson at Washington at a meeting held in the interest of Berea college, Kentucky, founded to educate the mountaineers. * * * The California eight-hour law for women providing that no woman shall be employed more than eight hours a day or more than 48 hours a week in any mercantile establishment, factory, hotel, hospital or apartment house, was held constitutional by the United _ States Supreme court at Washington. -• * * Importations of raw silk in the fiscal year 1914, totaling 34,500,000 pounds, broke all records, according to the department of commerce announcement made at Washington. This was an increase of 2,500,000 pounds over the imports, of 1913 and 21,500,000 Founds more than in 1900. * * * An executive order issued by President Taft in 1909 withdrawing from public entry and private exploitation of any kind 3,000,000 acres of oil lands in Wyoming and California was upheld by the United States Supreme court at Washington. * *■ * . The department of agriculture at Washington has extended the foot-and-mouth quarantine to nine additional states —Illinois, Indiana, lowa, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

President Wilson nominated the members of the interstate trade commission at Washington. He sent to the senate the names of Joseph E. Davis, Edward Nash, Hurley of Chicago,- William J. Harris of Georgia, William H. Parry of Seattle, Wash.; and George Rublee of Cornish. * * * Secretary Daniels of Washington ordered Commander Walter R. Gherardi, American naval attache at Berlin, to investigate and make a full report on the destruction of American steamer Evelyn. Chairman Stone of the senate foreign relations committee said he could see no complications arising from the destruction of the Evelyn. * * * The Army and Navy Journal in an editorial urged President Wilson to mabllize at once 1,000,000 volunteers. Purpose, editorial says, is not to make war, but to avoid war by preserving neutrality and maintaining country’s honor and dignity. . t * * * . -* .. Without a dissentipg vote the senate at Washington passed the army appropriation bill, carrying approximately $103,000,000, while the house aided in clearing up legislation for the session nearing a close by passing the $6.1)00.000 fdftification bill. : ‘

German Secret Service, For maay years past Germany has been spending on her secret' service between $3,000,000 and $4,000,000 annually, that is to say, about five times as much as France and from 12 to 15 times as much as Great Britain. The purpose to which these funds are mainly devoted is the establishment and maintenance of spies at fixed posts in potentially hostile countries, says a writer in the Atlantic. In France, where this smothered warfare has been waged most persistently, it can best be studied. The principal agents are iarelj Germans. They are as a rule Swiss, Belgians and Alsatians, with a sprinkling of corrupt Frenchmen, if they are Germans, then they hasten to take out naturalization papers and to make themselves conspicuous by protestations of loyalty to the land of their adoption. But in all cases they are instructed to disguise their operations under forms of ordinary business. They take shops, land agencies, hotels, insurance offices and so on. They follow their calling just like everybody else in the locality. They attract irb notice, either by having too much money or too little. Their businesses are soundly established and are in keeping with the requirements of the neighborhood. The expenses of starting them are borne out of the secret service funds, and from the same source the deficits, if any, in the annual balance sheet are made good. The man in

charge identifies himself with the life apound him, sits on committees, makes as many friends as possible, subscribes generously to local charities, and not infrequently gets himself elected to some minor pg|ce.—Chicago Journal.